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Author Notes:Panfusine and I were eagerly awaiting this week's contest theme when she guessed it would be fruit & veggie salad.

Well, she was wrong, but this salad is sooo right. The butternut squash counts as a fruit and the lotus is the vegetable.

Unfortunately when I made it for lunch, we didn't remember to take a picture until lunch was over. One picture is of the decimated bowl, the other is a better picture of the beautiful lotus root. —lorigoldsby

Cook butternut squash in a 350 oven for 35 min or until tender but not falling apart... Cool. Remove skin and cut into long rectangular "railroad ties".

Drain lotus root. Rinse well to remove pickling brine.

Make vinagrette using a fruity olive oil and a fruity balsamic vinegar. ( I had a gift bottle of Honey Ginger White Balsamic from Devo Olive Oil in Branson, Mo ) add zest and juice of 1 orange, salt and white pepper..

Toss ingredients together to coat lotus and butternut squash. Chill before serving...although this salad can be served room temp. Add pumpkin seeds and edible flowers before serving. the flowers are purely optional...I was inspired by the beautiful purple of the pansies as a contrast to the butternut squash.